It was announced three years ago, and has finally arrived! Disney Infinity has debuted on most current game systems. But, is it worth getting? Here’s a review of the newest Disney game…

What Is It?

First things first, this game is not just a game. I’d call it a system. It has a game. It has more than one game, actually. But, these are taken from “playsets”. Is it a toy? Kind of. The playsets are usually symbol figures that fit into a slot on the board that plugs into the console. This board has a slot for these playsets as well as figures that can be collected. The figures give the characters that a player uses in the games. Then, there’s the power discs. These are enhancements for in the games, and also for the “toy box”. The toy box is a free for all, unlimited sandbox for gamers to create their own world using pieces bought in the game, and also through the power discs. In this sandbox, gamers can make new games and share them with others. It’s a game within a game within a game powered by figures that are on a separate board that plugs into a console…in the bottom of the sea. Wait. Forget that last part.
Basically, there are several games within the bigger game, and these games can be collected through buying extra figures and “playsets”. Then, all of these correspond to making your own city/world/theme park thing that can also house custom made games made by the gamer. That’s about it. Hopefutlly it’s not confusing.

Controls

Of course, in any game, one of the biggest factors is can you control the thing? With Disney Infinity, yes. Yes, you can. The controls are responsive, though take a little time getting used to. Sometimes the camera is not easy to have it look the way you want it to. Sometimes in the Toy Box it’s hard to nudge objects around to build. But, overall, it’s not frustrating like other games I’ve played. It’s not the best, but probably in the next tier down. There’s improvements that can be made, but it’s not horrible.

Graphics

The graphics are stupendous! There is so much depth to this cartoon landscape, and even with vast sight! It probably helps that the look of characters are very cartoony and toy looking. It makes for simple features, but smooth look. But, overall, I’m surprised at how much can be shown because of how much is put into this game!

Story

For Disney, story is always important. For gamers, it can be very important too. But, with Disney Infinity there are infinite stories to tell. Well, maybe not infinite. I just wanted to say that somewhere in this review. Overall, the intro when first turned on is one of the most beautiful, elaborate, and greatest ways to introduce a game and its background. The stories within the games are great additional stories told of favorite characters. Maybe my one complaint is how villains that seemed to die somehow return. But, probably explained as this being about the imagination and “toys”.

Game Play

Wow! That’s basically the summary I can give to this. There is much variety to the games within this game. There are races. There are challenges. There are fighting arenas. There are shooter games. There’s platformers. It has almost all types of games that are out there! And all within the small, self-contained unit. But, with such an elaborate system, there are a few glitches. Sometimes games suddenly go black. Sometimes it’s hard for the board to read the figures. Sometimes the sound gets in a loop for a few seconds. But, those seem to be able to be fixed with patches. The games are fun, entertaining, and challenging. It has multiplayer, although the only way to have 4 people is to play online.

Playsets and Figures?

Not normally a category for a video game review, but this does have extra features to it. The board is nice and compact. The figures are nicely made and really do seem like full on toy figures to play with on their own. The power discs are fun to find and collect. Yes. They come in packs of two, but a purchaser does not know which ones he or she is getting. They are random with a few rare discs. Overall, everything works well 99% of the time, and add depth to the overall game system. And there’s great potential to expand with the plethora of Disney franchises out there. Perhaps we’ll see Marvel and Star Wars characters in the future…

Conclusion

Ok. Get ready. There’s a lot to cover in my conclusion.
First of all, I LOVE THIS GAME! When I first sat down with it, I thought that at the most I would play for a couple of hours and either get tired of it, or realize the time and move on. More than 4 hours later one night I finally had to get to bed. That’s how fun this game is! After, I started looking up what figures are coming out, how many power discs could stack together (the answer is two under each figure), and strategies for getting certain items. Oh, and there was trying to find when the iPad app would be released that will let me build in the Toy Box without being at my console. I started making a list of power discs I will be trying to get.

Within the about 4 hours, I barely scratched the surface on games. I only did the first, what I would call, levels of Jack Sparrow and Sully, who come in the Starter Pack. I used Mr. Incredible in the Toy Box, and in a few challenges and mastery adventures. These mastery adventures are tutorials for the Toy Box. With the Toy Box, I started thinking through what I want to do with this virtual theme park I can create.
And, this is one of the things that has sold me over. I’ve been a big fan and player of Roller Coaster Tycoon, and loved grabbing custom scenery to make my own somewhat Disney theme park. In Disney Infinity, there are pieces like the Haunted Mansion and Spaceship Earth. I can create my own theme park again!

Now, one big note is that I’ve been playing the Wii U version. I would say this is probably the best version, though I have only played one other version, and for like 5 minutes. It was the XBox 360 one over at Disneyland’s Innoventions. And, when I played it, I had no idea what was going on, and it didn’t seem as fun as it does now. Anyway, back to systems. From what I’ve heard, the 3DS and non U version of the Wii Infinity systems are not the way to go. The reason is that it doesn’t have the full capabilities that the more current systems have. The 3DS one, for example, just features mini-games, and no Toy Box. Bad news for such a dynamic game. The reason that I would recommend the Wii U version, though, is the Game Pad. The built in controller has a touch screen at your fingertips making it easy to choose what to place in the Toy Box. When I used the 360 version, the menu kind of got in the way.

Well, I think that’s almost all I’ve got to say. Here’s my recommendations: If you’re a Disney fan, this is a great game to explore. Whether character driven or theme park driven, this has something for both types of Disney fans. If you’re a hardcore gamer, this may not be the thing for you. It’s not a top of the line shooter. It’s not a top of the line racer. It’s some of everything. It’s a lot of fun, but not the top of the line game in whatever genres that most gamers are looking for. And, there’s a collection to be gotten from it. Overall, this is a lot more fun than I thought it would be. A LOT MORE FUN. I’m going to lose quite a bit of hours to this thing.